I. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and more specifically to techniques for establishing Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP) communication in a wireless communication system.
II. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various communication services; for instance, voice, video, packet data, broadcast, and messaging services can be provided via such wireless communication systems. These systems can be multiple-access systems that are capable of supporting communication for multiple terminals by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple-access systems include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems.
Generally, a wireless multiple-access communication system can simultaneously support communication for multiple wireless terminals. In such a system, each terminal can communicate with one or more base stations via transmissions on the forward and reverse links. The forward link (or downlink) refers to the communication link from the base stations to the terminals, and the reverse link (or uplink) refers to the communication link from the terminals to the base stations. This communication link can be established via a single-in-single-out (SISO), multiple-in-signal-out (MISO), or a multiple-in-multiple-out (MIMO) system.
Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP or MIP) is a communication protocol that enables transparent routing of data packets to mobile devices in a wireless communication system. Under the Mobile IP protocol, a device can register with a home agent (HA), through which the device obtains a “home” IP address. The home address of the device can then be utilized to route data packets to and/or from the device regardless of the location of the device within a wireless communication network. Conventionally, a mobile device can register with a HA by first discovering a global IP address of the HA and subsequently setting up a security association with the HA based on its discovered IP address. Upon association with the HA, the device can signal updates to the HA relating to the location and/or status of the device. These updates can be utilized by the HA to provide data packets to the device, either directly or indirectly via an access point of a disparate network to which the device has moved.
However, discovery of the IP address of a HA has proven difficult in wireless communication networks where mobility of devices is managed by a network-based mobility protocol, such as General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol (GTP) or the like. For example, the home link for Mobile IP in a given network may be conducted through GPRS or another similar technique such that a mobile device in the network does not need to be aware of the global address of its anchor point and/or HA while in its home network. As a consequence of the mobile device lacking knowledge of the global address of its corresponding HA, mobility of the device is made more complex and difficult. Accordingly, there exists a need for versatile techniques for Mobile IP HA discovery in a wireless communication network.